US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller on Saturday said by providing shelter to over a million people who had been persecuted in their own country, Bangladesh “has opened its heart and border.” The US envoy made the remarks to media while visiting Natarkandi High School at Astamir Char under Chilmari upazila of Kurigram to distribute relief materials among flood-affected people, said a press release.
In reply to a query over the repatriation of the oppressed community, Ambassador Miller assured that they would continue putting pressure on Myanmar to create the ground for the ‘voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable’ return of all Rohingyas to Myanmar state of Rakhine. “The pressure should be squarely on Myanmar to create a suitable condition for sustainable repatriation,” the ambassador said.
He said the US has provided humanitarian assistance worth $542 million both for Rohingyas and the host community in Cox’s Bazar. Mentionable, on Thursday last, foiling the second repatriation attempt despite all the preparations, no Rohingya turned up for ‘voluntary repatriation’ to their place of origin in Rakhine, prompting the authorities to suspend the attempt.
Bangladesh is now hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas and most of them entered the country since August 25, 2017. The two countries signed a repatriation deal on November 23, 2017, but there has been little progress. On July 29, 2019, Bangladesh handed a fresh list of 25,000 Rohingyas from around 6,000 families to Myanmar for verification before their repatriation to Rakhine.
With the latest list, Bangladesh has so far handed the names of around 55,000 Rohingyas to the Myanmar authorities and around 8,000 of them have been verified. Myanmar only cleared 3,450 Rohingyas for beginning the repatriation. On January 16, 2018, Bangladesh and Myanmar inked a document on ‘Physical Arrangement’, which was supposed to facilitate the return of Rohingyas to their homeland.
The ‘Physical Arrangement’ stipulates that the repatriation will be completed preferably within two years from the start. The first repatriation attempt made at the end of last year also went in vain. The first batch of Rohingyas was scheduled to return on November 15 last year; but it was halted amid unwillingness of Rohingyas to go back arguing lack of a congenial environment in Rakhine.
The US envoy also declared about donating $100,000 to flood affected people. US Ambassador inaugurated a programme of Care Bangladesh distributing cash money among 5,000 people of 200 families under assistance programme for flood-hit people in the district. The ambassador announced $100,000 US donation for the flood affected people, to be distributed by Care Bangladesh. The amount would be distributed among 4,900 people from more than 1,200 households, said the press release.
Kurigram Deputy Commissioner Sultana Parvin, Police Super Mohibul Islam Khan, US Aid Bangladesh Mission Director Derrick S Brown, Care Bangladesh’s Country Director Zia Chowdhury, Upazila chairman Shawkat Ali, Upazila Nirbahi Officer Shah Md Shamsuzzoha, were, among others, present. While in Kurigram, Ambassador Miller met with local government officials and residents to learn more about the flooding and how US assistance could complement government’s relief efforts. He visited Natarkandi High School to distribute cash grants, household items, and hygiene supplies and information for women and adolescent girls.
